(MENAFN - AFP) Argentina farmers said Monday a strike against the government's economic policies had all but shut down food production in Argentina, which counts among the world's biggest producers.

The strike, which got underway on Saturday and is scheduled to last through Wednesday, was backed by farmers across the country, according to strike organizers.

Farmers ...

(MENAFN - AFP) The European Union and the United States on Monday launched long-awaited formal negotiations on a vast trade pact.

Speaking just before the formal start of the G8 summit in Northern Ireland, British Prime Minister David Cameron said: "We are talking about what could be the biggest bilateral deal in history."

US President Barack Obama said the first ...

(MENAFN - AFP) The European Union posted a strong set of trade figures in April, boosting hopes that the economy is turning the corner after months in the doldrums, official figures showed on Monday.

The 17-nation eurozone had a trade surplus of 14.9 billion euros ($20.0 billion) in April, down from a record 22.5 billion euros in March but still strong enough to suggest ...

(MENAFN - AFP) US energy giant Chevron has signed another oil exploration deal in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, it said on Monday, one of several contracts between Kurds and foreign energy firms that have enraged Baghdad.

The contract to explore the Qara Dagh field, in the south of the three-province region, is Chevron's third with Kurdish officials, who have signed ...

(MENAFN - AFP) US tech giant Apple revealed on Monday it received between 4,000 and 5,000 data requests in six months from US authorities, days after Facebook and Microsoft released similar information.

Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and several other top Internet and technology companies have come under heightened scrutiny since word leaked of a vast, covert Internet surveillance ...

(MENAFN - AFP) European aircraft maker Airbus made a big breakthrough for its flagship A380 superjumbo airliner on Monday, taking the first order for the plane this year after a setback over cracks in the wings.

The provisional order, worth about $8.0 billion (6.0 billion euros) at list prices, came from Doric Asset Finance, a leasing group which will make the A380 giant ...

(MENAFN - AFP) US aircraft leasing group ILFC has ordered an extra 50 Airbus A320neo airliners with a catalogue price of $5.0 billion (3.7 billion euros), the two companies announced on the first day of the Paris Air Show on Monday.

In 2011, ILFC had ordered 100 of the A320neo aircraft which are more fuel-efficient than the A320 series, widely used by low-cost airlines ...

(MENAFN - AFP) Two of Turkey's main trade unions began a nationwide strike Monday to protest at police violence against anti-government demonstrators, a day after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended his crackdown on an Istanbul protest park.

Turkish Interior Minister Muammer Guler condemned the stoppage as "illegal" and warned strikers not to take to the streets, ...

(MENAFN - AFP) The Co-operative Bank in Britain said on Monday that it was planning to increase its capital cushion by £1.5 billion ($2.4 billion, 1.8 billion euros) to secure its future but without resorting to state aid.

The bank, which as a mutual is owned by its 4.7 million customers, said it would raise the new capital by issuing shares and bonds in exchange for ...